College Football Championship Odds: Contenders, Picks for 2025-26 CFP Title
The 2025-26 College Football Playoff bracket was released yesterday afternoon. Ultimately, there were some shockers, including Notre Dame completely missing the playoff despite earning 10 consecutive wins.
However, the committee took into account Miami’s 27-24 win over Notre Dame earlier this season and placed Miami in the field ahead of Notre Dame.
In addition to Miami making it, the ACC Champion, Duke Blue Devils, didn’t. That forced the committee’s hand, moving Tulane and James Madison into the tournament field. The rule states that there must be five conference champions in the field. But since Duke won the ACC and has five losses this season, Tulane and James Madison filled the final two spots.
We can easily narrow our choices to the top ten teams in the field, since those two teams have a very small chance of even reaching the next round.
Let’s take a look at our college football conference winner predictions below.
2025-26 College Football Playoff Odds
CFP Contenders, Sleepers to Watch
Ohio State Buckeyes (+215)
The Ohio State Buckeyes lost the Big Ten Championship to the Indiana Hoosiers last week. Ultimately, Ohio State failed to score a single point on two trips in the red zone, in short-to-go situations.
With offensive coordinator Brian Hartline headed to South Florida, the Buckeyes clearly weren’t connected on offense. A missed field goal to tie the game wasn’t the only issue. The Buckeyes were afraid to run the football on third-and-one and fourth-and-one on that drive.
There were just a lot of mismanaged areas that led to Ohio State losing. Yet, if Ohio State just executed a little better, it’d be celebrating a Big Ten Championship right now.
They’ll play the winner of Texas A&M and Miami, and then would likely have to take on Georgia in the semifinals. Georgia looked elite in their SEC Championship game, but played against an Alabama team that has looked atrocious over the last few weeks.
That’s why you can’t rule them out, even at +215.
Indiana Hoosiers (+280)
Google Curt Cignetti. He wins.
Since signing on with the Indiana Hoosiers, the premium head coach has lost just two times in two years. Indiana stuck with Ohio State for the entire game. The defense belonged, and the offense made plays when it needed to behind Fernando Mendoza.
Indiana will have to face Alabama or Oklahoma in the semifinals. Ultimately, Alabama and Oklahoma have both looked below average over the last couple of weeks. Whoever wins will more than likely struggle to beat Indiana.
That said, Indiana would likely have to face Oregon or Texas Tech in the semifinals. An Indiana-Oregon matchup would be intriguing. Yet Indiana already defeated Oregon on the road this season, 30-20.
Texas Tech Red Raiders (+850)
Texas Tech is easily the most underrated team in this tournament field. Ultimately, they’d have to face Indiana in the semifinals, which won’t be an easy task. Indiana would be favored, but nobody would be surprised if the Texas Tech Red Raiders pulled off a massive upset.
If you took Indiana and Texas Tech as your team twos, there’s a good chance one of those squads will play in the College Football Championship.
Texas Tech sure wishes it didn’t lose to Arizona State on the road. But since that loss, they’ve destroyed teams. The Red Raiders are dangerous.
Bet Bowl Season This Winter!
The College Football Playoff is super exciting with a 12-team format. But don’t forget, there are also many college football bowl games listed this month.
With many opt-outs and breaking news, if you stay up to date, you can find some excellent and valuable lines. To take advantage, make sure you have an open sportsbook account with at least one of our partners and be ready to attack lines when news breaks. The best lines don’t last forever!
Which Sportsbook Should You Check Out First?
There are so many awesome offshore sportsbooks that you’ll want to consider.
Above, I used the BetOnline odds for the College Football Playoff. They’re higher on Miami and down on Alabama. If you like Alabama to perform well in the tournament bracket, BetOnline is the place to bet it. You also can’t go wrong with Texas Tech at +850!
*The line and/or odds on picks in this article might have moved since the content was commissioned. For updated line movements, visit BMR’s free betting odds product.
